K-9 finds hiding Idaho man after La Pine pickup theft, chase
A Boise, Idaho man stole a pickup truck parked at a La Pine fuel oil business late Friday afternoon, led Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies on a chase and eventually abandoned the truck when it got stuck in soft dirt, deputies said. Deputies said the ensuing manhunt ended when a sheriff’s K-9 found him hiding in a nearby home’s crawlspace.
Deputies received a call shortly after 4 p.m. from someone reporting a man later identified as Shawn Vernon Wood, 33, of Boise, was “going crazy” in the parking lot of Ed Staub and Sons fuel oil on North Highway 97, said Lt. Mike Biondi.
The caller then said the man had stolen a red 1992 Chevy S-10 pickup truck parked in the lot and last was seen heading north on Highway 97, Biondi said.
About four minutes later, a deputy spotted the pickup and tried to pull it over, but Wood refused to yield and kept heading north, the lieutenant said.
The deputy pursued the pickup for about four minutes before discontinuing the pursuit “in the interest of public safety,” Biondi said in a news release. It was believed Wood was in the Pinecrest Lane area near La Pine.
A short time later, a resident on West Drive reported the pickup had struck their gate, Biondi said. It was found unoccupied in front of a home in the 17000 block of West Drive, stuck in the soft dirt.
A search perimeter was established by deputies, Sunriver police and Oregon State Police troopers, and sheriff’s K-9 Ezel and partner Deputy Jeremiah Johnson were called in to help track Wood.
Ezel and his partner found Wood hiding in the crawlspace of a nearby home on West Drive and he was taken into custody without incident, Biondi said.
Wood was taken to the Deschutes County Jail in Bend and jailed on numerous charges, including first- and second-degree burglary, car theft and attempting to elude police, as well as two counts of reckless driving and criminal mischief. His bail totaled $81,000.
Investigating deputies learned Wood’s black 2016 Dodge Ram 2500 pickup had run out of gas, and he left it on Highway 31 south of La Pine before allegedly stealing the Ed Staub truck, Biondi said.
